There’s something funny about the numbers involved in Azerbaijan’s “Great Return.”
An item published May 15 by the government-connected outlet Caliber.az examines the repatriation process of Azerbaijani internally displaced persons (IDPs) to territories reconquered by Baku during the Second Karabakh War.
The article states that as of the start of May, the population of Nagorno-Karabakh and the East Zangezur region, territories long occupied by Armenian forces, stood at almost 43,000. The vast majority, over 28,000, were classified as temporary residents involved in reconstructing infrastructure and building new housing stock to accommodate tens of thousands of expected returnees. There are also 1,150 students at educational institutions in the region.
The report adds that 13,745 individuals who could be counted as IDPs have returned to the regions. That total marks a sharp jump in the repatriation pace from late 2024, when officials pegged the returnee number at about 8,000.
A decree issued by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and adopted in late 2021 established a reconstruction plans for the Karabakh and East Zangezur “economic zones” that included a repatriation program, dubbed the “Great Return.“ The first phase of the repatriation plan set of goal of accommodating 140,000 IDPs by the end of 2026.
It would seem, given the Caliber-reported numbers, the government is going to be challenged to meet that target.
